Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Our thanks to PJ, Lori, and Chloe Nicolini for the great and delicious spaghetti dinner last Saturday. Also thanks to our basket committee, Patricia and Karen Batten, and all those who prepared and donated those beautiful arrangements. We are impressed and grateful to the members of the parish youth group and faith formation who could not be more helpful and professional in serving and all the kitchen staff and of course our always present custodial staff and KofC. Finally, thanks to all who supported our annual dinner. It was a most pleasant and fraternal evening.

This week we celebrate and contemplate another aspect of Ecclesiology, i.e. the nature of the Church. The Church, the Mystical Body of Christ, begins with Jesus Himself, He is the Head, and Mary, His Mother and ours is the heart: and the Holy Spirit is power that flows through the “veins” of this Mystical Body. The Body is composed of three tiers: The Saints in Heaven, those who assist us in our pilgrim journey to the Kingdom. This is called the Church Triumphant since they are victorious with Him. Secondly, the Church in Purgatory, those in need of purification from venial sins. These poor souls rely upon us, by our prayers and sacrifices, to expiate their time in Purgatory. That is why we offer Mass intentions almost daily that by the power of Christ’s Sacrifice they may be set free. And finally, the Church Militant here on earth. We who are pilgrims are in mortal combat with the forces of evil in the world. Empowered by the Sacraments and the intercession of our Blessed Mother and the Saints we struggle and make our way in confidence to our ultimate goal, our home in Heaven.

Following the ancient practice of the Church, following our Masses on All Souls Day, we make a pilgrimage to the cemeteries to pray for our beloved dead and bless their graves as they await the resurrection of their bodies at Christ’s Second Coming. A plenary indulgence is granted to the Souls in Purgatory when the living faithful visit and pray at the cemetery from November 1st to the 8th. What better gift can you give to your departed loved ones.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

     From Monday noon until Thursday noon all active priests of the diocese will be on convocation with Bishop Bambera  and Bishop Joseph Kopacz, retired bishop of Jacksonville, Mississippi and my Ordination classmate.  This is a mandated gathering annually so the Bishop may be in fraternal contact with his priests.  When I say “his priests” it is necessary to remember that at his Ordination a priest promises obedience and respect to his Bishop and all of his,i.e. the Bishop’s, successors.  A priest is never really his own man  but has a filial and fraternal bond to his bishop from whom he receives his authority and mission.

   Now that we have had a bit of a lesson on Ecclesiology (the study of the nature of the Church) let us turn our attention to today’s Word of God.

 A phrase bantered about frequently these days is “social justice”.  We hear it not only in secular circles but also from the Church.  There is a serious danger that these two different spheres may be lumped together as having the same understanding.  They do not.  The “this worldly” understanding of social justice revolves around a sense of fairness and  due rights.  Who, then, or what is the arbiter of fairness and rights?  In the secular realm the deliberation of these is in the purview of “who is in charge”.  Secular power determines what is fair,hence what is just.  Now there may be an ethical foundation formulated by philosophical principles but these are generally relative to prevailing “winds”.  In other words relative to time and place.  When the sands shift, so too does the foundation.   Therefore what was right and true in one era is anathema in  another. The cries for social justice then in the secular world are as fickle as can be.

    Contrarily, the Church’s understanding of social justice is based on unconditional love of God and love of neighbor.  This is the immovable foundation, the perennial Truth upon which we disciples of Christ affect social justice in the world.  The foundation of love elevates human beings.  It does not relegate them to something less as if they must be dependent on a “big brother” who will care for all their needs.  We have something greater than a big brother, man-factured, relativistic system.  We have God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who knows us better than we know ourselves, knowing the best for the needs we have, and supplies for them if only we place our trust in Him. He is the originator of social justice as expressed in the Scriptures we hear today.

With Blessings,

Father Langan

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

  On this World Mission Sunday we might ask ourselves the question: “How have I been a missionary this past week, month, year?”  It is not an absurd question but rather one which the Church has asked us especially since the Second Vatican Council, and every Pope since then presenting the same challenge.  When we truly understand the meaning of mission:  making the Gospel known to all we encounter, then we do not think of it as something out of our reach.  Mission and missionary, for too long, were thought of as dedicated clerics or lay persons dedicating themselves to far off and exotic places.  That of course is one aspect of mission and it takes an immense amount of courage and stamina to do it.  But courage and resolve are necessary here on the home front as well, most especially with those closest to us.  Our timerity comes at the risk of “offending” or being shunned by those we love.  Being a missionary, at home or abroad, is a risky business.  God, of course, does not leave us without the gifts and wisdom necessary to bring the Good News to others.  Most of the time it is just a matter of unleashing the Gifts of the Holy Spirit already present, and maybe dormant, in our souls.

    As we pray for the Missions far and wide and support them with our contributions as well  let also ask the Good Lord to set us on “fire” with spreading His Holy Word.

With Blessings

Father Langan

— —

Heavenly Father,

We humbly place our beloved Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, into Your loving and merciful hands.

Surround him with Your peace. Strengthen his body, comfort his heart, and grant him courage in the face of uncertainty.

Guide the hands and minds of his doctors, bless those caring for him, and, according to Your holy will, restore him to health.

May the Blessed Virgin Mary wrap him in her maternal mantle, and may the Holy Spirit sustain him with unwavering faith and hope.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

                 The unnamed man in today’s Gospel asks one of the two universal questions: (in our parlance) “How do I get to heaven?”, and the other being, “if there is a good God, why is there so much evil in the world?”  These are the inquiries that so perplex the modern person. Assuming that we want to get to heaven we must first realize that Jesus Christ by His Passion, Death and Resurrection has “paved” the way for our being able to enter the heavenly realm.  Our part is to follow the way He has set by cooperating, imitating, and offering our lives to Him.  This began in the waters of Baptism but frequently we smear the eternal light entrusted to us and scurry through the dark, anxious and directionless.  When we invoke the wisdom of God as mentioned in the Book of Wisdom we avail ourselves to the virtues of prudence and humility that set us once again on the right path.  And that right path is exactly where we want to go.

        Travelling on the right path means getting rid of the cumbersome baggage that weighs us down.  That “baggage” becomes evident to us when through prayer and discernment we recognize what impedes our spiritual progress.  Yes, the way to heaven is not easy, but is it God’s fault or our own?  Are we so attached to the sins and preoccupations of this world that we are hindering our progress?  I wonder what the discernment of the questioning man concluded.  I wonder if he took up the challenge of our Lord.  I wonder if we can?

      Remember that October is the month of the Holy Rosary and perhaps only second to the Mass and the Sacraments, it is the most powerful means to bring peace and concord to the world.  Praying the Rosary is an act of charity because we are sacrificing our time and attention for other matters in order to bring about a greater good that may not even directly affect us but certainly bestow grace upon others.  The repetitiveness of the prayers are not meant to twist the will of God or make Mother Mary love us more than She already does. Its tempo is to calm our hearts (studies have shown that praying the rosary lowers blood pressure), and souls that we might  be more disposed to God’s grace and desirous of accomplishing His will.  Do not let this month pass without making the rosary an important spiritual discipline in your life.  A special thanks to all who gathered this past Saturday for the annual rosary rally.  For those  who led it and prepared for it our deepest gratitude.

With Blessings,

Father Langan